Finger cleaner



FINGER CLEANER John M. Uren, 906 Denver St., Salt Lake City, Utah FiledOct. 29, 1958, Ser. No. 770,463

Claims. (Cl. 206-47) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in finger cleaners for use particularly although notnecessarily, in cafes, restaurants, etc., in lieu of finger bowls andhas for its primary object to provide, in a manner as hereinafter setforth, novel means whereby patrons of such establishments mayconveniently clean or freshen the fingers both before and after dining.

Another very important object of the present invention is to provide afinger cleaning or freshening kit of the character described which maybe left on a dining table ready for use at all times and which, further,makes available to the patron a supply of paper napkins and a cleaningsolution for use therewith.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a finger cleaning orfreshening kit of the aforementioned character which will becomparatively simple in construction, strong, durable, compact, of lightweight, sanitary, attractive in appearance and which may be manufacturedat low cost.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a finger cleaner or freshenerconstructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a view in vertical longitudinal section through theinvention; and

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the solutionholder, showing the top separated from the housing.

Referring now to the drawing, it Will be seen that the embodiment of theinvention which has been illustrated comprises a vertically elongated,substantially square housing 4 of wood, plastic or other suitablematerial. The housing 4 includes a removable top 5. The top 5 rests onsubstantially triangular plates or cleats 6 which are provided thereforin the corner portions of the housing 4 adjacent to but spaced below theupper end of said housing.

Removably mounted in the housing 4 is a dispensing container 7 for afinger cleaning solution. The dispenser 7 is of the pump type andcomprises a bottle 8 provided with a screw cap 9 in which the pump 10 ismounted. A circular opening 11 in the top 5 of the housing 4accommodates the dispenser cap 9. Mounted on the neck of the bottle 8,below the cap 9, is a gasket 12 of foam rubber or other suitableresilient material.

Afiixed to one side of the housing 4 is a substantially rectangularshallow box or tray 13. The tray 13 is for the reception of a supply ofpaper towels, as indicated at 14.

It is thought that the use or operation of the device will be readilyapparent from a consideration of the fore going. Briefly, the patronremoves one of the napkins 14 from the tray 13 and holds said napkinbeneath the nited States Patent 0 2,985,289 Patented May 23, 1961 icespout or nozzle 15-01? the pump 10. The pump10 is'then actuated fordischarging the desired quantity of the cleaning solution in the bottle8 on the napkin in an obvious manner. Thepaper napkin may then bedisposed of. As hereinbefore stated, the device may be left on the tableto be used at any time by the patron. The device being thus convenientlyavailable at all times for cleaning or freshening the fingers, thenecessity of requesting the usual finger bowl or using a public lavatoryis obviated, an important and desirable feature of the invention. Ifdesired, squeeze, pressurized and other suitable types of dispensers maybe used in lieu of the pump dispenser 7.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention asclaimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A finger cleaner comprising a vertically elongated housing ofsubstantially square horizontal section including a bottom and walls,said housing being open at its upper end, said housing for the receptionof a dispensing container, triangular cleats mounted in the cornerportions of the housing adjacent to but spaced below the open upper endthereof, a removable top mounted in the upper portion of the housing andresting on the cleats, said top having an opening therein for thepassage of the upper portion of the dispensing container, and aresilient pad for the dispensing container mounted in the housingbetween the top and the cleats.

2. A finger cleaner comprising a housing of square horizontal section,said housing including a bottom and walls and being open at its top,triangular cleats in the corner portions of said housing adjacent to butspaced below said top, a square closure in the upper portion of thehousing supported by the cleats and having a circular, centrally locatedopening therein, a pump-type solution dispenser comprising a cylindricalbottle mounted in the housing, said bottle including a reduced neckprojecting through the opening and providing a shoulder on said bottle,a cap threaded on the neck and engaged in the opening, a pump mounted onthe cap and extending downwardly therefrom into the bottle, said pumpincluding a radially projecting discharge nozzle on its upper endportion, and a square, resilient pad secured on the neck between the capand the shoulder.

3. A finger cleaner in accordance with claim 2, said bottle peripherallyabutting the cleats for retention thereby against horizontal movement inthe housing.

4. A finger cleaner in accordance with claim 2, said pad extendingoutwardly between the closure and the cleats for frictionally resistingrotation of the bottle in the housing.

5. A finger cleaner comprising a square housing open at its top andincluding a front and sides, a napkin tray fixed on one of said sides,triangular cleats in the corner portions of the housing adjacent to butspaced below said top thereof, a square closure supported by said cleatsin the upper portion of the housing, said closure having a circular,centrally located opening therein, a solution dispenser comprising acylindrical bottle removably mounted in the housing and including areduced neck extending upwardly through the opening in spaced,concentric relation thereto and providing a shoulder on said bottle, acap mounted on the neck and engaged in the opening, a pump mounted onthe cap and extending downwardly therefrom into the bottle, said pumpincluding a discharge nozzle on its upper portion projecting outwardlytherefrom over the front of the housing, and a square, resilient padsecured under compression on the neck between the cap and the shoulderand engaged between the closure and the cleats for frictionallyresisting rotation of the bottle in the housing, said bottleperipherally abutting said cleats for centering said bottle andretaining same against horizontal movement in the housing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

